Boko Haram: 480 soldiers flee into Cameroon

No fewer than 480 Nigerian soldiers have fled into Cameroon following fierce fighting with Boko Haram Islamist militants, Cameroon’s army has said, reports BBC.

Cameroon’s army spokesman, Lt. Col. Didier Badjek, said the soldiers had been disarmed and were now being accommodated in schools.

Clashes are said to be continuing in the border town of Gamboru Ngala.

Boko Haram on Sunday released a video in which it said it had established an Islamic state of Gwoza, a town in Borno State.

The group’s five-year insurgency has intensified in recent months despite the deployment of thousands of extra troops to the worst-affected areas in the North East.

Last week, it was alleged that a group of soldiers refused to follow orders to go and fight Boko Haram, saying the militants were better equipped.

Insurgents also seized one o two main police training academies, which is near the town of Gwoza, captured earlier this month.

The Nigerian soldiers are currently in the Cameroonian town of Maroua, about 80km (50 miles) from the Nigerian border, Lt Col Badjek told the BBC.

Thousands of civilians are also said to have fled across the border.

Cameroon has officially closed its 1,600-km border with Nigeria to help contain the spread of the deadly Ebola virus but correspondents say this is impossible to enforce in the remote areas near the fighting.